Following my Women’s Ministry call from God, I found the Christian Leaders Institute for free ministry training online. I am so humbled and honored to be a part of the Christian Leaders Ministries family!
My name is Jacqueline Crawley, and I am a servant leader for Christ. I am 28 years old. Originally from California, USA, God has moved me to Virginia, USA. Virginia is where I met my amazing husband, Josh. We recently moved to Williamsburg, Virginia, and God has blessed us with two amazing children of God.
I am currently a registered nurse and work in the NICU (Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.) I am a contract nurse for the government, so I only serve our military families, which is such a blessing.
My Introduction to God and Salvation
I did not grow up in the church and was not taught who God is. However, life taught me to search for God. In high school, I became pregnant. My parents kicked me out after I graduated. I had no direction or purpose in my life. I knew going to college was the thing I was supposed to do. The father of my child asked his mom if she could take us in. She was a believer and told me that God told her to take us in. It was my first time learning the word God.
Since we lived with her, she took me to church weekly. I enjoyed the service and music. At first, I didn’t understand the terminology they used, until one day I did. The day I realized what they were saying is the day that I gave my life to Christ. I asked God to reveal His plan to me. He directed me towards nursing school. He paid for my college expenses and allowed me to get help with daycare expenses.
Women’s Ministry Call
After graduating from school, I became heavily involved in serving the church. I fell in love with serving. As I served, I also shared the story of my life. I had no idea that the God of grace is who delivered me from drugs and alcohol. I began to share how God healed me from sexual assault and bitterness from being a teen mother and a single mother. My story helped to bring many women to have a deepening relationship with God.
God began to place a passion and burden to teach women the word of God. Currently, I am an intern at my church and serve in the Women’s Ministry. God has called me to pursue pastoral leadership for Women’s Ministry! I am so eager and thrilled to finally be pursuing God’s Women’s Ministry call! I am so excited to be joining you all and learning at the Christian Leaders Institute. God is doing mighty things in His Kingdom, and I am so honored to be a witness for Christ as well as following where God is leading me!
Learn more about ordination at the Christian Leaders Alliance. Interested in a low-cost degree? Check out the CLI’s Leadership Excellence School.
Hello! My name is Ronnie Travis Vaughan, and I am 54 years old. I am receiving further Christian education free at the Christian Leaders Institute. I grew up just outside of the Washington DC beltway on the Maryland side. Dropping out of High School at 16, I got my GED. Then, I started working and ended up with a pregnant girlfriend by the time I was 17. By the time I was 19, I was married and in the US Army. I had already made what seemed like a lifetime of bad choices and was on a one-way street to nowhere fast, so the military seemed like the only choice for me.
I spent four years in the military. It taught me a lot. However, I continued to make bad choices and often got into trouble for the things that I did while off duty and drinking. I decided that the military wasn’t for me and blamed the rules for all my troubles. The thing is when I got out my troubles just followed me. Needless to say, alcohol abuse eventually caused marital and financial problems as well.
God Saved Me
Thanks be to God that it all came to a crisis point one day in 1993. I felt like giving up, and I turned to Christian radio for comfort. I heard Dr. Charles Stanley explain the gospel very clearly, and I gave my life to Jesus Christ that day! That was 27 years ago. I’ve now been happily married for 35 years. We have three children, three grandchildren, and one step-grandchild.
Being so sold out for the Lord, I ended up serving in various positions within the local church. I eventually ended up getting licensed as a minister by the Evangelical Church Alliance. Later, I got ordained by another non-denominational group while helping a friend with a church plant. Even so, I have never been in full-time ministry. All my ministry training took place in the local church while I worked and studied at the denominational level. However, I have also taken a few scattered courses for further Christian education.
Wandering
After moving around a bit and leaving the church I primarily served in for over 17 years, I started going to church less and less over time. I ended up backsliding into my former lifestyle. Eventually, I ended up with health issues that kept me from working as well.
God Never Stopped Calling
During the downtime, the Lord began to work on my heart again. Within the last few years, I have been getting back into regular Bible study and prayer. I’ve come to the end of myself and have started seeking local fellowship once again. To make a long story short, fellowship is proving difficult during this COVID 19 crisis.
Further Christian Education at CLI
Regardless, I’m setting out on a new adventure with the Lord while seeking to further my Christian education here at the Christian Leaders Institute (CLI). It’s my prayer that by entering into a formal program of study the Lord will keep me on the right path to serve Him once again in whatever capacity He chooses. And I said, “Here am I; send me!” (Isaiah 6:8)
Learn more about ordination at the Christian Leaders Alliance. Interested in a low-cost degree? Check out the CLI’s Leadership Excellence School.
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My name is Karen Simms-Lawson, and I am excited to study for free at the Christian Leaders Institute. I am from the island of Jamaica. In December of 1996, I gave my heart to the Lord Jesus Christ. I have been walking with the Lord ever since.
My Testimony
One of the things that propelled me to the Lord was when I watched my aunt as she held my uncle-in-law in her arms. He had just taken his final breath as he lost his battle with cancer. I have never forgotten the feeling of helplessness that I had at that time. As I was not a Christian, I knew well enough that I did not have resurrection power. Broken and helpless at that time, I knew it. He was someone I could talk to about anything, and he would give fatherly, wise counsel.
Earlier that night, as I traveled home on the bus, I started sensing death. I instantly knew someone was dying. I could hardly wait for the bus to get to my stop. When the bus stopped, I ran for home as I had experienced that feeling before, and the inevitable had happened. I finally arrived at my gate, almost breathless from running and walking intermittently. My grandfather met me and told me that death was in the house. Immediately, I ran to my uncle’s room and saw my aunt holding him in her arms as she rocked and groaned. That night I knew I needed God.
Serving God and Study for Free at CLI
The day he was buried, I was baptized. Since then, I have not looked back. I minister to the adults and children at my workplace, church, and in my community. It is my joy to serve in song, prayer, and the Word of God. I also served as a Sunday school teacher and worship leader at the church I first attended. Now, I have joined a new congregation, and I am awaiting the go-ahead to serve as there. I love the Lord, and I desire to serve him with all of me.
Recently, I knew I needed ministry training, so I searched online. Then I found the Christian Leaders Institute. I am thankful for the opportunity to study for free and be equipped to serve!
Learn more about ordination at the Christian Leaders Alliance. Interested in a low-cost degree? Check out the CLI’s Leadership Excellence School.